Pack for a Purpose: Bringing What a Community Has Asked For

On one of my own trips I wished I had known, before I left home, that I could find out what the people I was meeting actually needed. Pack for a Purpose is a website that does this. Lodges, hotels and tour companies in more than 50 countries list a local project they work with and the items it has asked for, and you can pack from that list before you go.

How Pack for a Purpose works

You search for your country on the Pack for a Purpose website, find a lodge, hotel or tour company on your route, and read what its project has asked for. The requests vary by place and include school supplies, basic medical items, sports equipment and pet supplies. You pack from the list, tell the lodge or operator what you are bringing, and hand it in at their desk when you arrive. They pass it on to the project, and the organisation says each participant reports the weight it receives every year. Their step-by-step instructions cover the same process.

You do not have to be staying at the lodge you choose. You can hand supplies in at any participating lodge or operator on your route, but you deliver them yourself, so it helps to pick one close to where you will be.

How much of your luggage allowance could you spare?

Pack for a Purpose suggests about 2 kg (5 lb), which is roughly the weight of a bag of sugar, but there is no upper limit and you can bring as much as you are comfortable carrying. If you are travelling light or flying on small aircraft, a few items will still do. If you have room, you can bring more.

Weight goes a long way with the right items. About 2 kg carries 400 pencils, or 5 deflated footballs with a pump, or a stethoscope, a blood pressure cuff and 500 plasters.

What to check before you pack

Bring only what is on the lodge’s list. Email them before you travel to confirm the items are still needed and agree when to hand them in. Check your baggage allowance as well, particularly on internal flights, where allowances are often lower than on your long-haul flight. If you are booking with me, I can tell you the allowance for each flight on your itinerary.

School supplies travel lightest out of their packaging and in paper or fabric bags, because many countries have banned plastic bags. Crayons, chalk and coloured pencils stay in their boxes. Footballs are deflated for packing. Stethoscopes and blood pressure cuffs go in your hand luggage.

Medicines need more care. Check the customs rules for the country you are visiting, because some over-the-counter medicines are not allowed, and make sure any medicine has at least 8 months left before its expiry date.

What it does not do

Pack for a Purpose does not arrange shipping, volunteering or visits to projects. A visit can only be arranged through the lodge or operator, and unannounced visits to schools disrupt the day. It is a US non-profit, not a UK registered charity, and the tax deduction it mentions applies to US citizens only, so there is no tax relief for UK donors. Their FAQs answer most of the practical questions.

An option, not a requirement

Some travel professionals question handing goods to communities at all, because it can teach them to expect gifts from visitors. With Pack for a Purpose the hand-in is to the lodge or operator, not to individuals. Friends of mine and other travel agents I know have used it. It is something you could do if you want to bring what a community has asked for, and not something I ask of clients. My approach to travelling responsibly, including the Traveller’s Pledge, is on my Responsible Travel page.

Call or WhatsApp 0117 452 1159 or email bridget@worldclassadventures.co.uk